Trump Says Deportation Policy Was ‘Too Tough’ After Midterm Losses

President Donald Trump said his administration’s deportation policy may have been “too tough” and hurt Republicans in last week’s midterm elections, in a CBS “60 Minutes” interview that aired Sunday night. It was his first extended interview since Democrats took control of Congress on Nov. 3.

Trump told correspondent Ross Douthat the immigration crackdown “both helped and hurt” his party. He gave himself an “A-plus for closing up the border” and said he got “very high marks for getting the bad ones out.” But he added: “I get hurt because we also took people that had good jobs, that created one violation, or breaking of the law, and that was that they came into the country illegally.”

Asked if the policy had gone too far, Trump said: “I think it was too tough… I think it might be too tough, yeah,” adding, “And I think ultimately that hurt me.”

A deal with Democrats, and a new chief of staff

Trump said a deal with the incoming Democratic Congress could be “doable.” “The deal would be we would work something out,” he said. “And I think that’s something that’s actually doable.” He also said people who entered illegally and committed serious crimes should still be deported.

The interview was recorded Friday, shortly before Trump named Stephen Miller, the architect of the immigration crackdown, as chief of staff. Miller took over as White House chief of staff on Monday.

What the voters said

An Associated Press survey of more than 100,000 voters found about six in 10 said enforcement had “gone too far.” The New York Post reported about one in three Hispanic voters backed a Republican in their House race, down from roughly four in 10 who voted for Trump in 2024.

Reporting based on coverage by Fox News and the New York Post.